Retrial for Wirral father accused of injuring baby - 30th Apr 2009 11:52am
Retrial for Wirral father accused of injuring baby
A JURY has failed to agree a verdict on a young Wirral father accused of attacking his three-week-old son leaving him permanently disabled.
After a month long trial a jury at Liverpool Crown Court was unable to reach a decision on Dean Hodkinson and the case has now been adjourned until May 8.
It has been alleged that Hodkinson, a former soldier, forcibly squeezed and shook his baby son while downstairs alone with him in their Wallasey home.
He then carried the baby, who was like "a rag doll", upstairs to the baby's 17-year-old mum and asked, "What does it mean when when the baby goes all floppy?" claimed Stuart Driver, QC, prosecuting.
She began panicking and he calmly walked into her mum's room and said the same thing. "He was holding her in his left arm and with his right arm lifting up his legs and letting them drop."
At hospital it was found that the little boy had suffered 17 rib fractures, his collar bones and shoulders were broken and he had also suffered traumatic brain injury.
"Some of the injuries were of such severity which is only seen in serious road traffic accidents," said Mr Driver.
Hodkinson, 20, denied causing grievous bodily harm with intent on August 9 last year to the child, who cannot be named for legal reasons.
Hodkinson has been further remanded in custody until May 8 when it is expected a date for a re-trial will be fixed.
THE GLOBE
A JURY has failed to agree a verdict on a young Wirral father accused of attacking his three-week-old son leaving him permanently disabled.
After a month long trial a jury at Liverpool Crown Court was unable to reach a decision on Dean Hodkinson and the case has now been adjourned until May 8.
It has been alleged that Hodkinson, a former soldier, forcibly squeezed and shook his baby son while downstairs alone with him in their Wallasey home.
He then carried the baby, who was like "a rag doll", upstairs to the baby's 17-year-old mum and asked, "What does it mean when when the baby goes all floppy?" claimed Stuart Driver, QC, prosecuting.
She began panicking and he calmly walked into her mum's room and said the same thing. "He was holding her in his left arm and with his right arm lifting up his legs and letting them drop."
At hospital it was found that the little boy had suffered 17 rib fractures, his collar bones and shoulders were broken and he had also suffered traumatic brain injury.
"Some of the injuries were of such severity which is only seen in serious road traffic accidents," said Mr Driver.
Hodkinson, 20, denied causing grievous bodily harm with intent on August 9 last year to the child, who cannot be named for legal reasons.
Hodkinson has been further remanded in custody until May 8 when it is expected a date for a re-trial will be fixed.
THE GLOBE
If you enlist under the age of 18, your contract lasts until the day before your 22nd birthday. If you're over 18, your contract time is four years and three months. To leave after this point, you need to give 12 month's prior notice in writing of your intention. So did he a) not make the grade or b) get discharged for something